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|E 286 
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AN 

1831 
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ADDRESS 



BEFORE THE 



MEMBERS OF THE TAUNTON LYCEUM. 



DELIVERED 



JULY 4, 1831. 



[published at their request.] 



BY FRANCIS BAYLIES. 



BOSTON: 

.T. H. EASTBURN CONGRESS STREET. 

1831. 



1^31 



^ -i 



^ 



ADDRESS. 



The indulgence of my fellow citizens is great, I 
know, and I am compelled to draw upon it to the 
iull extent of my credit. 

It is impossible for me, at present, if ever, to 
come before you with an elaborated and finished 
address, — systematically arranged, with rounded 
periods, and sentences, which have been polished 
like a warrior's weapons, until they shine, and flash, 
and glitter and dazzle ; but I must approach you in 
my every day dress, and shew myself as I am, " a 
plain blunt man, who speaks right on, and tells you 
that, which you yourselves do know." 

In short, my friends, I have not had time to pre- 
pare for this occasion ; but if you will permit me to 
proceed in my desultory manner, you may pick out 
some truths from a mass of crudities. 

I have a well founded claim on your indulgence, 
for you well know that in another place during the 
preceding month, I have been constantly, strenu- 
ously employed in doing your business ; I appreciat- 
ed the confidence manifested so repeatedly, too high- 
ly and too gratefully to neglect that business. 

Having been a working-man in your employment 
so long, if I should not be thoroughly prepared for 



4 

the play which is now to be "enacted," for your amuse- 
ment, I trust you will accord some favor to an old, 
long tried and faithful servant. 

It is awkward, I acknowledge, to speak so much of 
myself ; yet the circumstances and the occasion 
must be my justification. I am the more induced to 
offer these preliminary remarks, because I well know 
the difficulties which a political orator at the present 
time is compelled to encounter. He must go forth 
armed at all points, and ready for battle. His path 
is beset by lions and serpents. He must encounter 
the roars of the one and the hisses of the other. To 
do a giant's work, requires a giant's arm, — to do it 
successfully is glorious, and it is glorious even to fail 
in the attempt. 

It is a melancholy truth, in the history of man, that 
most governments have originated in force, and few 
by the consent of the people ; few indeed there are, 
where the people acting either by themselves or their 
agents, have universally concurred in their establish- 
ment. 

That the form of the government has a powerful 
influence in fashioning the character of the nation 
over which it is established is an unquestionable truth, 
but far greater is the influence of its practical admin- 
istration. 

This is exemplified in the history of the United 
States. The original form of the Government under 
which the American colonies were ruled was not only 
monarchical but despotic. The two most ancient 
colonies of North- America, Virginia, and Plymouth 
were founded in the reign of James I, and their set- 
Lleuicnt commenced at a period when the doctrine 



that kings ruled by divine right was acknowledged 
by the whole world. The origin of these American 
colonies was in the darkest hour of the dark night of 
European despotism, — yet that hour was the harbin- 
ger of the day star of liberty. The spirit of religious 
freedom was then commencing its mighty work, — 
and when the people began to inquire into the reasons 
why one man should dictate to them the articles of 
their religious faith — it was an easy transition to the 
inquiry why one man should dictate the forms and 
the principles of their civil government — for on the 
theory of government as then understood all rights 
were derived from the crown, and whatever privileges 
the people enjoyed were derived from royal grants. 

The eastern colonies of North America became 
practical Republics through the spirit of religious 
freedom, — and approached as near to perfect democ- 
racies, as was possible under their circumstances; — 
a perfect democracy, we all know, is not practicable 
unless over a territory so limited in extent, as to 
enable the whole people to act personally, in mak- 
ing the laws : — therefore it is, that the political pow- 
er is entrusted to agents, chosen by the people, rep- 
resenting the people, and accountable to the people — 
and such governments are representative democra- 
cies. Such in fact though not in theory, were the 
New England colonies from their origin, to the va- 
cation of their charters in the reign of James II : — 
and such Rhode-Island and Connecticut continued 
to be, after the accession of King William, although 
an essential change was then eifected, in the gov- 
ernment of Massachusetts. A royal Governor rep- 
resenting the Sovereign, superceded the Governors 



chosen by the people, and then commenced in this 
province the contest between the advocates of pop- 
ular rights, and the advocates of the powers of the 
royal prerogative, which found its crisis in the revo- 
lution, and its consummation, in the declaration of in- 
dependence. 

The mode of sustaining civil liberty in the United 
States, is a question, which it is the duty of every 
American statesman to look full in the face ; if he 
shrinks from it, he is undeserving of a place in the 
public councils ; if for popular favor, he professes 
doctrines apparently favorable, but really destructive 
to the principles of freedom, he is a political hypo- 
crite. If the intentions are honest, mistakes ought 
to be pardoned, and eccentricities excused. — But let 
the wrath of the people fall upon him, who for the 
sake of power, distinction, or office, advocates prin- 
ciples which he knows to be wrong, and believes 
to be dangerous, and inflames popular excitement, to 
ruin honest men. If the demagogue usurps the pa- 
triot's place in the affections and confidence of the 
people, it is a certain evidence of the decay of public 
virtue. 

One of the first duties of the patriot, is to warn 
the people against the influence of foreign example. 
That influence has engendered many bitter animosi- 
ties, and wrought much woe. It is not for us to re- 
ceive the lessons of liberty from abroad, from pre- 
tenders and imposters. It is not for us to be taught, 
when we are capable of teaching. 

Although we have learned to view the political 
events of Europe with calmness if not with apathy, — 
with philosophic moderation and not under the excite- 



ment of burning passions. — Although it is nearly cer- 
tain that it will not be possible hereafter to stigma- 
tise any party which may arise here, either as Brit- 
ish or French ; — for we have grown too great, we 
are too independent in feeling, as well as in fact, to 
permit ourselves in any crisis, to wear the badge of 
a foreign nation ; yet there are lurking dangers, 
which are neither to be contemned nor concealed. 
We have that within us, which may be roused. The 
same air that is wafted by the zephyr, is driven by 
the whirlwind. Like those crazy but generous 
knights, who traversed the world to redress its 
wrongs, we may find ourselves unexpectedly tilting 
in the lists, with the chivalry of Europe. We have 
much curiosity. When the maelstrom of European 
politics begins to roar, we may approach so near, that 
it will require all our dexterity to shun the gulf. But 
at present, I trust we can examine the character of the 
recent revolutionary movements in Europe, without 
prejudices or partialities, and that we may be per- 
mitted to predict consequences, without incurring 
the imputation of foreign predelictions, or antipa- 
thies ; if it were not so, no wise statesman, would 
permit himself to mistake a temporary clamour, for 
the popular voice. 

With these preliminary remarks, I shall proceed 
to a fearless examination of the character of the re- 
cent revolution in France, and the commencing revo- 
lution in Great Britain. The discussion of these 
topics, in my opinion, is peculiarly appropriate, on 
this day. We cannot fail to profit by it, if we bring 
our minds, fully and fairly to the investigation of 
subjects, so peculiarly illustrative of political history, 
and political philosophy. 



8 

The recent French Kcvolution, althougli foreseen 
and predicted by some who look beneath the surface 
of politics, as an event likely to happen at some peri- 
od, came upon the world like an earthquake in a still 
and tranquil day — like a tornado in the midst of a 
calm and sunshine. The lirst sensation was that of 
amazement. When the imagination is strongly affect- 
ed, the other faculties of the mind are paralized — so 
it was at first with the American nation ; from the 
central city to either extremity of our wide empire a 
simultaneous shout of triumph ascended to the heav- 
ens. A point of union was found for all — But this 
universal sentiment of approbation however credita- 
ble to our feelings, in my opinion does no great credit 
to our political sagacity. Perhaps I shall always be 
fated to stand alone, and to doubt when all others 
are convinced. Can it be that when I think I see 
on its periodical return the same comet which fright- 
ened my infancy " which from its horrid hair shook 
pestilence and war," blazing high in the heavens 
again, I am deluded by a phantom ? 

On the 24th of July, King Charles dissolved the 
Chamber of Deputies. On the 23th, he imposed 
additional restrictions on the Press. On the 27th, 
the Revolution commenced. On the 31st, it was 
terminated — the reigning King was expelled — the 
Duke of Orleans was placed at the head of the 
Government. A new ministry was appointed — the 
tri-colored flag of the first revolution displaced the 
lillies of the Bourbons — Fayette reappeared at the 
head of the National Guards — the chamber of Depu- 
ties although dissolved, resumed its powers, and the 
revolution was completed. 



To form a just idea of its principles and of the 
probability of its ultimate success, it is necessary to 
examine the manner in which it has been conducted, 
the characters of the leading revolutionists, and the 
capability of the people of France to sustain a govern- 
ment of limited powers. 

If a revolution commences in blood it is ominous 
of evil. The American people bore much, and suf- 
fered much, without dreaming of forcible resistance. 
For ten years, they remonstrated — they petitioned — 
they entreated — and until they were driven to the 
battle field their hands were unstained with the 
blood of a single enemy — and yet the people of Mas- 
sachusetts endured far more oppression than the 
Parisians ; the Boston Port bill — citizens shot down 
in the streets — the vexations of the custom house — 
the seizure of the military stores — the annihilation 
of the Provincial Charter, were far greater evils than 
the ordinances of the French King touching the 
press — yet we endured them all before wc resorted 
to arms. 

As in the tirst revolution, so in the second, the 
Swiss Guards were made the first victims. The 
Swiss Guards acting on the simple principle of fideli- 
ty to their engagements which bound them to pro- 
tect the person of the King, maintained their faith, 
their principles, and their honor, and were butcher- 
ed one by one — while the troops of the line under 
an oath of allegiance, — :iiid subjects of the king, — 
as we are told, looked gravely on the slaughter of 
their foreign comrades, discovered no emotion, and 
made no effort to protect them, but yielded these re- 
publican soldiers to the sabres of the soldiers and 
9 



10 

slaves of Napoleon ; to the mob of well dressed 
printers and philanthropic gentlemen, — to the ruffian 
bands from the Fauxbourgh St. Antoine who came 
forth from their foul and filthy lurking places, like 
famished wolves bearing their ancient pikes rusted 
with the blood of former victims — snuffing the taint 
of the carnage, and screaming for fresh blood. 

The ostensible object of the revolution, was the 
restoration of the charter ; — for this, the blood of 
seven thousand people was shed ; — for this, Paris 
was made a battle field ; — for this an ancient dynasty 
were driven into a hopeless, miserable exile ; — and 
yet the first act, of the new rulers, was a greater 
violation of the charter, than any which had been 
committed by the king: — one hundred and ten peers, 
were deprived of their titles, and their places, whose 
rights were recognised in the charter. Had the 
evils which the French people endured under the 
charter, been oppressive and intolerable, then the 
right of complete revolution, of entire change would 
have existed, but that was not pretended. The ob- 
ject t)f the Revolutionists was the restoration of the 
charter — and while sternly avenging its violation on 
the King, they did not hesitate themselves to violate 
it in one of its most important provisions ! 

The charter was to be restored which had been 
violated by an infringement of the freedom of the 
press, and yet the persecution of the press, and of 
men, for freedom of speech by the new government, 
has been vindictive, vexatious, and tyrannical. Be- 
tween February and May in the present year, there 
have been eighteen public prosecutions, against edi- 
tors for libels, and against others, for disloyal ex- 



11 

piessions. One editor has been prosecuted for an 
article complaining of the ill treatment of the Catho- 
lic priests, and favourable to a general toleration : — 
another for saying that the charter of 1830, was not 
to become that great truth, which was promised in 
the days of the Revolution, by Louis Philippe. — Three 
persons were prosecuted for expressing sentiments 
favourable to Charles X. Two for railing against 
the national guards. The curate Le Fevre, for ex- 
pressing his dislike to the King in a sermon. One 
person for saying, down with the ministers. Two 
for saying, down with the national guards, and down 
with the lamp-posts. Two for saying, long live Na- 
poleon II. Several were prosecuted for a conspira- 
cy, for having said, "the people were sovereign, and 
that all powers and authorities were subject to 
them," that being the doctrine under which Louis 
Phillippe was called to the throne. One was prose- 
cuted for censuring the Administration, and one for 
saying, "long live the Republic;" and this is the 
government which has restored the freedom of speech 
and of the press ! 

The characters of the leading Revolutionists are 
important when investigating the character of the 
Revolution. 

Gen. Girard appears on the front ground the cham- 
pion of the rights of the people and of the rights of 
the press, — the instrument — the tool — the idolater of 
Napoleon. Where was his patriotic energy — his 
devotion to liberty — his attachment to the freedom 
of the press, when Napoleon banished a female and 
shot a printer for using the press, as the medium of 
bringing liberal opinions before the people ? 



12 

The bankers, La Fitte aPxd Casimir Perrier also 
a|)[)ear as principle actors in this terrific farce. Why 
come forth the money changers to mingle in this 
strife of armed men ? They were disquieted with 
the steady course of the finances — they wanted fluc- 
tuations — they wanted to sell out and buy in, and to 
realise monthly, millions. They have no conception 
of the moral sublime of a revolution which changes 
a dynasty and affects a world. They consider a 
Revolution as a speculation. No matter if the streets 
of Paris are deluged \a ith blood. The woes and the 
miseries of the people are nothing, if their money 
bags m'p, filled. From the sublime to the ridiculous, 
is but a step. So said Napoleon, and he understood 
things well. Casimir Perrier, Prime Minister of 
France ! One moment accepting a bill — then dictat- 
ing a royal ordinance — now discounting a note, and 
now signing a treaty — now calculating the per cen- 
tage, or rate of exchange between gold and paper — 
now drafting a code of laws for Algiers, — now mov- 
ing a box of specie, now moving an army — now 
breaking a merchant, and now ruining a nation. 
The reign of the Bankers however is generally short. 
The Banker who was placed at the head of the revo- 
lution of 1789, was soon forced from his Bureau to 
his desk, from the Halls of State, to his counting 
room. 

In the eyes of Americans the approbation of 
Fayette sanctions any cause. The purity and sin- 
cerity of this veteran son of liberty cannot be doubt- 
ed. He is not even ambitious of power, but he has a 
})assion for fame and notoriety. He seeks to drive 
the Chariot of the Sun, not indeed to set the world 



13 

on fire, but to shew himself to the world a skilful 
charioteer : to do this he may approach too near the 
earth, and while he thinks that nothing but beams of 
light are radiating from his car, he may find to his 
amazement that he has kindled a general conflagra- 
tion. 

Let us now pass to the apex of the revolutionary 
pyramid ; the champion of popular rights — the citi- 
zen king — the young Egalite who ascends his throne 
by the double title of Representative of the Orleans 
branch of the House of Bourbon and as the represen- 
tative of the Revolution, the revolution of liberty and 
equality, — who appeared in the first act of that tragic 
drama, and now assumes the chief part in the catas- 
trophe. 

Possessing millions, all recovered by the restoration, 
he boasts of having worn the glorious tri-colour, under 
which emblem his wealth was scattered to the winds 
and his head devoted to the guillotine. The Revo- 
lution made him a teacher of languages and mathe- 
matics — a fugitive and an outcast, the restoration 
made him (after the reigning family) the first prince 
of the blood, and the lord of princely wealth. It 
placed him at the foot of the throne, and enabled 
him to mount it over the prostrate form of the head 
of his House, 

" to whom he stood in double trust 



* As kinsman, and as subject, 
Strong both against the deed," 

Much has been said of his virtues : virtues are always 
found in royal personages, except in such as have no 
thrones. 



14 

If the pupil of his father's mistress if the de- 
scendeiit of that infamous regent Duke, whose vices 
were not surpassed by the successors of Augustus, 
whose example tainted the age in which he lived, 
filled men with amazement and with doubts of the 
justice of Heaven, which permitted such a wretch to 
live and to reign, if one who was baptised in the 
blood of the first revolution, who had before him, 
a monster of portentous growth of profligacy, sensu- 
ality, meanness, dishonour, cowardice, treachery and 
murder in the person of a father — has resisted the 
influence of such examples, — we may indeed suppose 
that like the Saxon Princess he could walk unharm- 
ed over the burning ploughshares. 

Already the meanest of the vices, ingratitude, has 
developed itself in its natural seat — a royal bosom. 
Already he speaks in the language of Bolingbroke to 
his illustrious patron and friend, to whom he owes 
his crown, the venerable Fayette. 

" O, Sir, 
Your presence is too bold and peremptory, 
And majesty might never yet endure, 
The moody frontier of a servant brow. 
You have good leave to leave us ; when we need 
Your use and counsel, we shall send for you." 

I know it is the fashion of the times to place his 
virtues and qualities in triumphant contrast w ith those 
of his royal kinsman, to talk of the liberality of the 
one and the bigotry of the other. But let us exam- 
ine this accusation of bigotry, which has been so often 
urged against the unfortunate Charles. 

It is certainly not unbecoming, even in a Royal 
personage who has reached theage of seventy-three. 



15 

to be regular and devout in his religious practices, 
and to perform the duties required by his Church 
with zeal and punctuality. That the King was a 
sincere christian according to the creed of the Church 
of Rome cannot be denied. But because he practic- 
ed what he professed — which was the Christian re- 
ligion as believed and practiced by half the christian 
world, is he to be reproached by a Christian people ? 

The only inquiries pertinent to this subject are 
these : Did he persecute men for their religious faith ? 
Did he violate the laws to favour a sect ? I defy any- 
one to prove that the King violated the laws to fa- 
vour the Catholics, or to oppress the Protestants : — 
if any fault has been committed it has been that of 
too much toleration, for under indulgence a monster, 
hunted from all civilized communities has found a 
refiige in France, and has breathed his poisons in 
Churches and in Palaces — a monster whose ambition 
aims not merely at the overthrow of human thrones, 
but of the throne of God ! 

Penal laws are necessary, unquestionably, in the gov- 
ernment of society — but of all the checks on the in- 
ordinate passions and propensities of men, that of re- 
ligion is the most effectual. Superstition is better 
than irreligion, for that at least is some check to the 
excesses of vicious passions. The belief of a future 
state where human crimes are to be examined and 
judged, has restrained the violence of the ravisher, 
and sheathed the poignard of the assassin. Under 
the influence of such belief the midnight incendiary 
has thrown away his firebrand. The ties of honor, 
the precepts of philosophy, the kindness and benev- 
olence of natural temperament are but as feathers in 



16 

the tempests of the human passions. But the most 
ferocious, the most savage heart — the heart which 
has defied the tempest, the earthquake, and the fire, 
has melted into tears of penitence at the sound of the 
still, small voice. Hence it is that all wise states- 
men and lawyers have always availed themselves of 
the influences of religion as a powerful instrument in 
controlling and repressing the disorders and violences 
of society. 

If a community which neither professes to believe, 
nor actually believes in the existence of a Supreme 
Being, shall regard all the laws of moral and social 
obligation, do justice, practice self denial, endure pri- 
vation, want, and suffering for the general good — then 
indeed human nature is changed, and a millenial 
state is preparing for man. The dreams of philoso- 
phy however have but little connexion with the sober 
realities of life, and man without religion will be as he 
has ever been, the slave, and the victim of his pas- 
sions. Throughout the fair land of France the great 
majority of the people regard religion either with 
fanatical hatred (for atheism has its fanatics) or with 
scorn and ridicule, and it is made the subject either of 
malignant reproach or of gay derision. The heart of 
the Atheist is blighted — it is dead to every generous 
emotion — to every kindly feeling. Destitute of the 
moral sense he knows no distinction between virtue 
and vice — right and wrong — truth and falsehood. — 
Insensible to all human sympathies and all human af- 
fections, the indulgence of every evil, and malignant 
and ferocious passion, will be restrained by nothing 
but his fears or his interest. Like the deadly Upas, 
he taints the moral atmosphere, and thrives in the 



17 

midst of the desolation he has created. The enemy 
oi' ail, like the Pirate, he raises the death flag and 
wars on the human race. 

A community of Atheists would realise on earth 
the vision of hell — " a hell ringing with curses and 
blasphemies". Men would be changed to devils, and 
hnd their pleasure in tormenting each other. With 
them the shedding of blood would be sport — murder 
a pastime. The order of social life would be derang- 
ed. A wild and ferocious anarchy would succeed to 
law, to morality and to religion — civil society having 
no basis to rest upon would fall to pieces. If such a 
community, even were it composed of men as learned 
and intellectual as Hobbes or Spinoza, Voltaire or 
Volney, can be governed by equal laws, or by any 
power short of the sword — we shall be compelled to 
admit the existence of miracles, even if we deiiy the 
truth of revelation. 

To return to the unfortunate King — I ask again 
where are the evidences of his bigotry and intolerance? 
The secrets of his heart-7-the breathings of his spirit, 
the wounds of his conscience were all laid open to 
the Archbishop of Toulouse. By his advice the King- 
was governed, whenever the action of the royal pre- 
rogaXive was required in the affairs of the Church. — 
And who was this royal confessor, this keeper (so to 
speak) of the King's conscience ? — Cheverus, for- 
merly bishop of Boston. There can be no mistake 
as to him. He was our fellow citizen, almost forty 
years, and never was there a human being, who bore 
his high qualities so meekly, who was so little of the 
Churchman, and so much of the Christian ; — so sin- 
cere, so humble, and so devout, so much enamoured 
3 



of virtue for its own sake, so grateJul to the Creator- 
and so benevolent to his creatures. Like the early 
martyrs of the church, he would have died for his^ 
faith. Like the blessed Saviour whom he worship- 
ped, he wept for the misfortunes of his fellow men, 
and felt and prayed for all. Amid the angry con- 
tentions of his protestant brethren, in the wild nf- 
roar of discordant passions, in the fierce strife be^ 
tween religious parties, he stood among us the dis- 
ciple and preacher of peace, the friend and benefac- 
tor of his race. Such was the man who in all mat- 
ters touching Relig^ion, possessed the most control- 
ling influence over the mind of Charles X. 

The next question in the course of this investiga- 
tion is this; — can the present constitution or charter 
of France be sustained ? 

If the present race of Frenchmen, who never en- 
joyed a year of true liberty, can feel its true spirit, 
a spirit not to be created by casual circumstances, 
but by education and a course of moral discipline ; 
it will prove that the moral laws, by which human 
nature is regulated, are not immutable. 

A Democratic monarchy, for such is the present 
government of France, is certainly an anomaly. It 
seems to me, to be as incongruous as a lamb's head 
on the body of a lion. There is but one precedent. 
A Democratic monarchy was established during the 
first Revolution ; and Louis XVI, was a spectacle for 
the ridicule of France. A constitutional King, yet 
destitute of influence or power, and a miserable pris- 
oner in his own palace. In a monarchical govern- 
ment there must be an intermediate power between 
the King and the people, or else there is no stability 



19 

to the throne. A monarchy cannot be sustained 
without an Aristocracy ; an Aristocracy which spreads 
its roots throughout the nation, — based on ancient 
names, historical recollections, and vast wealth. A 
national clergy, may be a collateral support to the 
throne, but if the people are destitute of religion, or 
if they profess a religion different from that of the 
established church, it is a feeble one. There are it 
is true, in France, a body of men called Peers, but 
totally different from a true Aristocracy ; mere polit- 
ical jobbers, the creatures of an hour, enjoying neith- 
er the respect or the confidence of the people, and 
totally incapable of sustaining the throne in ordinary 
times, and in a crisis, an incumbrance, rather than 
a support. All sound civilians agree in the opinion, 
that a throne cannot be sustained without the sup- 
port of a real Aristocracy, the elite of the nation for 
birth, talents and wealth. Of this truth Napoleon 
himself, who seemed to rule by his own sword, and 
the musquets of his soldiers, was convinced. "I 
ought, said he, to have attached the emigrants on 
their return ; I might easily have become an object 
of adoration with the Aristocracy. An establishment 
of that nature, was necessary for me. It is the real, 
the only support of monarchy, its guide, its lever, 
its point of resistance. Without it, the State is but 
a vessel without a rudder, a real balloon in the air. 
But the essence of Aristocracy, its talismanic charm, 
consists in antiquity, in age; and those were the 
only things 1 could not create. The intermediate 
means were wanting." 

If the clergy cannot be sustained for the want of 
religion in the people, if a legislative Aristocracy 



20 

cannot be created for the want of the essential eh-- 
nients, — antiquity — historical names and wealth, if 
the monarch be destitute of that commanding genius, 
which when armed with the executive power, can 
sometimes uphold an ill constructed fabric of Govern- 
ment, how long will the present constitution of 
France endure ? The next arrival may bring us the 
news of its overthrow. The latter days of this 
month may give us another revolutionary anniversary 
or it may happen on the 10th of August. That it 
will happen before another year be completed — 1 
have little doubt. The shape which a new govern- 
ment may take is a question of much doubt. It may 
be that Napoleon II will mount the throne. It may 
be that the infant Duke of Bordeaux will restore the 
lillies of the Bourbons. But the probability is that 
a Republic with a constitution somewhat similar to 
that of the United States will be established. I 
have no hesitation in saying that such a government 
would be preferable to the existing one ; but whether 
such a government can be sustained in France is a 
question of great doubt. If it be given into the 
hands of philosophers and philanthropists they will 
soon begin to dream of Utopia, and to torture their 
inventions in framing metaphysical plans of constitu- 
tions, founded on the abstract theory of the perfecta- 
bility of man. These are the men who would em- 
bark on the revolutionary ocean in a high pressure 
steamer w^ith corroded boilers. 

If the government be placed in the hands of such, 
the aggressions of the Jacobins perhaps under a new 
name, but with the same principles, will be sure to 
follow. They will set fire to the social edifice, and 



21 

while it is burning, the philosophers will be dis- 
cussing the nature of flame, and devising modes to 
extinguish it without application of water ; during 
their deliberations, the building will burn down, — and 
sans-cullottes will howl, and triumph, and dance and 
rejoice among the warm ashes. Havoc, plunder and 
murder will be incorporated as legitimate principles 
in their code of government. The Goddess of Rea- 
son will ascend the new Jacobin throne. The 
Churches will be closed. 

Last scene of all which ends this strange eventful 
history will be the man with the sw ord ! — But if the 
government be entrusted to those who are better ac- 
quainted with man as he is, than w ith man in the ab- 
stract, who consider the human race, as human beings 
with passions, affections, sympathies, and moral and in- 
tellectual qualities ; — not as mere machines, to which 
the application of mechanical power will give a certain 
and positive movement which shall always be equal 
and exact, — who consider them as more or less inllu- 
enced by usages, customs and circumstances and not 
altogether by abstract theories ; if such rulers to this 
practical knowledge should unite good intentions and 
enlightened wisdom, and if some great change should 
be effected in the religious character of the nation, 
a Republic may be sustained even in France. But 
it is a most fearful experiment. May God in his 
mercy avert his wrath from this brave, intellectual, 
vivacious, cultivated, polished and amiable people ! 

It was my intention to have treated the subject of 
the commencing revolution in Great Britain, some- 
what at large ; for a revolution it is, or will be : but I 
find myself constrained to keep Avithin narrow limits. 



22 

I have already taxed your patience too severely, and 
I must curtail my remarks, although, I think the 
consequences of the British, will be more interesting 
to the world, than those of the French revolution. 
The scheme of reform if it succeeds will certainly 
unsettle the balance of the English Constitution. 
The existing organization of the House of Commons 
is as much a part of the system of government in 
Great Britain, as the King, the House of Lords, the 
Law Courts, or the Church. The derangement of 
either may prove the derangement of all ; and the dis- 
franchisement of a borough may disturb the motion 
of the whole machine. The security of vested rights, 
once deemed so vital a part of the constitutional law 
of England, will be impaired, and may be destroyed. 

From time immemorial we have heard the rotten 
borough system of Great Britain denounced as unjust, 
and subversive of all free principles — yet a rotten 
borough system is neither more or less, than an une- 
qual representation of the people. 

Let us see how we the enlightened people of old 
Massachusetts who have such a detestation to rotten 
boroughs, apply our principles to our practices. 
This very year, within three weeks the Legislature 
of our State by the voice of a large majority have 
taken the preliminary step to establish the rotten bo- 
rough system, in the representation of our venerable 
Commonwealth, by giving to the people of Middle- 
sex, Worcester, Old Hampshire aud Berkshire with 
a population less by nearly thirty thousand than the 
remaining Counties a majority of thirteen in the House 
of Representatives, and establishing as a constitution- 
al principle the right of the minority to legislate for 



23 

the majority. Depriving a part of the people also", 
of a right, anterior to the Constitution itself; the 
right of being represented, because they happen to 
reside in small towns. All this is done, not in sul>- 
mission to any ancient usage, not for the purpose of 
avoiding a greater evil, not in respect to prescriptive 
privileges and vested rights ; but as an improvement 
in our constitution ! Great Britain can defend the 
system which she is about to abandon, with far more 
forcible arguments than w^e can defend its assump- 
tion here. 

In Great Britain the system of Parliamentary re- 
presentation originally, was not very unequal. The 
inequality has been created by time, accident and un- 
controllable circumstances. The pow er of electing 
members of the House of Commons was not consi- 
dered originally as a right or even a privilege, but a 
burthen, and many petitions are now on the files of 
Parliament, not only from boroughs, but from Coun- 
ties praying to be released from this political obliga- 
tion. But such is, or was, the chymical elasticity of 
the British Constitution, that it transmuted an origi- 
nal burthen into a high privilege, and transformed an 
imposition and hardship into a popular right. 

The House of Commons, so far as England is con- 
cerned, became fixed on its present basis during the 
reign of Charles H. On that basis it has remained 
with little variation to the present day. About the 
same period the nation became divided between the 
two great parties of Whigs and Tories. The Whigs 
being regarded as the advocates of liberal, and the 
Tories of arbitrary principles. Yet their positions 
have been frequently reversed. The Whigs in pow- 



24 

er have frequently practiced the most barefaced cor- 
ruption, and have been the unblushing advocates of 
the most odious powers of the royal perogative, while 
tlie Tories, out of power, have been the efficient de- 
fenders of popular rights and civil liberty. 

The late dissolution, will throw into Parliament 
a decided majority of Whigs. The King sustains 
them, and the popular feeling runs like a torrent in 
their favour. Parliamentary reform, is the question 
on which the two parties divide. To this, the Whigs 
are pledged ; and the Tories view it as a measure 
which will ultimately subvert the constitution. 

The argument on this question has been much 
perplexed, by confounding the abstract rights of man 
in a state of nature, with the social rights as regu- 
lated by the institutions of society. None have a 
natural right to govern others : that right is a creature 
of society : government and laws are creatures ot 
society, and restrictions on the natural rights of man. 
Yet we are eternally discovering oppressions and in- 
justice in the social regulations, because they neces- 
sarily conflict with natural rights. The reformers 
in England seem to be proceeding on the theory of 
abstract rights, without regarding the obligations of 
the social system ; and this, in my apprehension, was 
the grand mistake of the revolutionists of France. 

If under a particular social system, great abuses, 
great oppression, great unhappiness, and great mis- 
ery, should fall upon the people, the remedy will be 
found in the right of revolution. The only question 
will be as to the degree of the evil, and the expedi- 
ency of forcible resistance. It is a serious affair to 
change the fundamental principles of the constitution 
of a nation. 



zo 



There is however but little doubt, that the plan of 
reform submitted to the last, will succeed in the 
present Parliament. At this point of reform, the 
Whigs will be disposed to stop. Having disfran- 
chised forty or fifty Tory boroughs, and added seve- 
ral new members to Whig counties and cities, their 
predominance in the national councils will be se- 
cured, and the Tories, the old Church and King 
party, as to political influence, will be annihilat- 
ed. Having effected all their party purposes, the 
Whigs will be anxious to preserve the remaining in- 
stitutions, and will endeavour to prevent any further 
alteration in the constitution of the Parliament. 

But they will soon find amongst their munitions of 
war, the materials of their own destruction. They 
will find that they have nursed in their own ranks, 
as a sort of inferior coadjutors, or rather as Helots, 
to do their worst work, a party, who, like the mad- 
dened elephants, will trample on their keepers ; who 
will spring into power, with all the hardihood, and 
terrific energy of the French Jacobins ; who will 
turn their policy upon them with dire success, and 
conquer them with their own Aveapons. 

"So the struck eagle stretched upon the plam, 
No more through rolling clouds to soar again, 
Vievv'd his own feather on the fatal dart, 
And winged the shaft that quivered in his heart : 
Keen were his pangs, but keener far to feel, 
He nursed the pinion which impelled the steel ; 
While the same plumage that had warmed his nest, 
Drank the last life drop of his bleeding breast." 

When the right of suffrage shall be extended in 
the manner proposed in the Reform Bill, the great 
4 



26 

body of tlie peo})lc will be admitted to a i)aiticipation. 
The Radicals of thv. Parliament now so few^ in num- 
bers, and so contemptible in influence, will then be- 
come the real Tribunes of the people. The grada- 
tions of property, once so regular as to ensure perfect 
security ajrainst internal convulsions, have become 
fearfully abrupt. The nation is now divided into two 
classes, and tw^o classes only — the most alarming di- 
vision that can exist — the division of rich and of poor, 
and the poor outnumber the rich in the proportion of a 
hundred to one. This state of things presents many 
advantages to those who are bent on complete reform. 
And this argument can be used by the Radicals with 
great plausibility. If natural rights are to supercede 
the social compact, what disposition shall be made of 
property. Property is as much a creature of social 
regulation as a Borough. If you can take from A 
his right of suffrage, why not from B his manor or 
his farm ? The social regulations are now working 
a greater inequality in property, than in civil and po- 
litical privileges, creating monopolies, giving to the 
few the means of luxurious enjoyment, entailing on 
the many, want, ignorance, vice, and pauperism. — 
The laws have protected individual property for the 
common benefit of society. If the peace and happi- 
ness of society are not secured, let us reform, let us 
equalize, let us fix a maximum. Hitherto much has 
been gained for the Whigs, but nothing for the people. 
The Reform shall go on, we will have our Parlia- 
ments annually chosen. We have the same power to 
fix the time for which members of Parliaments shall 
be chosen, as the numbers to be chosen. If we have 
a right to alter the constitution of the House of Com- 



27 

mons, \vc have an equal right to alter the constitution 
of the Executive Department. Our Chief Magistrate 
shall be elected, we will have no hereditary Legislator. 
The idea that a man is born a Legislator is absurd. 
The Teachers of Religion shall trust to Providence for 
support, and not to tythes and sinecures. Shall the 
Dignitaries of the Church be permitted to live in 
Palaces and to revel in wealth and luxury, when the 
Author of our religion had not where to lay his head ? 
The people are sovereign, and they shall exercise 
their sovereignty — they shall rule — and rule they will. 
England will become a Republic — perhaps after a 
civil war. I will not venture to predict the period of 
its duration, or the time of its termination. There is 
a God above, and he is a God of mercy ! 

To use the words of Jefferson. " During these 
throes and convulsions of the ancient world, during 
the agonising spasms of infuriated man, seeking 
through blood and slaughter his long lost liberties, 
will it be surprising if the agitation of the billows 
should reach even this distant and peaceful shore ?" 
No, it will not be surprising. We shall view the strug- 
gles and changes of Europe with an intense and 
burning anxiety. Every gale will waft to us, the 
news of some new convulsion ; it is not in our nature 
to view such struggles with indifference; every feeling 
of our hearts, will be in a state of continual excite- 
ment. It is against this sensibility that we ought to 
guard. We have experienced enough of European 
revolutions. We have gone too far in our predilec- 
tions and antipathies to foreign nations. Let the 
parties there, fight their battles on their own ground, 
and not disturb the tranquil firesides of America. 



28 

Our happiness is too precious to be thrown away. 
Let our hmd be the asylum of the fugitives. Let 
our arms, be always open to receive the wandering 
children of misfortune, of whatever tongue, of what- 
ever party. They will do us no harm. The son 
of a King, is a Postmaster in Florida. A king who 
has worn two crowns, is a peaceable citizen of New 
Jersey. Let us keep out of this strife, let us min- 
gle in none of its feuds. We have nothing to do 
with the balance of European power. If our rights 
are assailed, let us seek our redress, "peaceably if 
we can, forcibly if we must." If our honour is as- 
sailed, let us fight. 

We are scarcely sensible of the happiness of our 
condition. We are not made to feel the existence 
of our national government by its exactions, or by 
the array of force and arms ; it touches us with the 
lightness of a feather. Some changes in office some- 
times happen, and we hear much of the spirit of re- 
form, but it is an impartial spirit to say the least ; 
it visits friends as well as foes. The President and 
the Vice President may quarrel, the integrity of the 
unit may be destroyed, the fashionable society of 
Washington may be thrown into a flutter by the fol- 
lies and vagaries of a female, the Secretaries may 
abuse and challenge each other, the Seer of Penn- 
sylvania, may have a sort of Highland second sight of 
assassins ; what then, no treason is commited, except- 
ing treason against the English language, and the rules 
of grammar. The nation goes on prosperously, hap- 
pily ; the quarrels of Presidents, Vice Presidents, 
and Cabinets, cannot seriously affect the happiness 
of twenty individuals ; they are scarcely worth a mo- 
ment's thought. 



29 

But there arc subjects worthy of all our tlioughts, — 
our national interests. 

Let us cultivate all our resources, let us spread 
our canvass on every sea ; let us push our commer- 
cial enterprise to the ends of the earth, "saying to 
the North, give up, and to the South, keep thou not 
back ;" let us drag up riches from the depths of the 
ocean, and turn even the polar ices into gold. 

Let us protect our domestic industry ; let us guard 
our own manufactures from foreign competition ; 
from foreign animosity. That interest is vital, it 
must be protected ; it would be a violation of nation- 
al honour, of public faith, to abandon the manufac- 
turers, after repeated and solemn pledges, that they 
should be sustained, so far as protecting duties can 
sustain them. If an administration, can be frighten- 
ed from their settled policy by threats of nullifica- 
tion, they are unworthy of the support of the people. 
Let us hope better things. 

Our destiny is in our own hands, — we may be the 
mightiest, or we may be the meanest nation, that 
ever existed. 

The swelling tide of our population is covering 
every Prairie of the West, every green hill of the 
North ; it will flow from ocean to ocean. Then let 
us give the wings to enterprise, and essay the con- 
quest of time and space. Canal boats shall ascend 
summit levels, on mountains ; and our people, and 
our productions, shall be borne along our stupendous 
railways, with a speed that shall literally outstrip the 
winds. 

Away with that sullen jealousy, that scowling en- 
vy, with which we too often regard the sons of ge- 



30 

nius, the men of talent ; let us cherish them, as we 
would cherish the vital blood of our bosoms ; for 
through them we may win the meed of fame, in eve- 
ry department of human knowledge, and place the 
monuments of our glory, on rocks of Adamant. 

Above all, let us reject all foreign interference. 
If wars should disturb and desolate Europe again, 
if France and Great Britain, should engage in another 
contest for superiority, let our position be neutral ; 
not the neutrality of feebleness, but of strength. — 
Not the neutrality which would crouch to both, and 
permit the flags of both to insult our sovereignty, 
but that neutrality Avhich is conscious of the power 
to defend itself. Which while rejecting with equal 
indignation the cross of St. George, and the tri-color 
of France, would raise the stars and stripes aloft, the 
banner of Liberty ; like the Labarum of Constantine, 
bearing upon its ample folds, these immortal words, 
emblazoned in characters of living light, "by this 
sign thou shalt conquer." 



N o r E s 



A. 

The author knows that there are some who have no desire 
to understand his real opinions ; but if impressions unfavoura- 
ble to him can be produced, they are willing to seize upon in- 
sulated expressions — detach them from their connexion, and 
pervert their meaning. 

Knowing this, he is not surprised to learn that ho has been 
denounced as an enemy to the principle of equality in popular 
representation. 

He meets this denunciation by referring to his course in the 
Legislature of Massachusetts, during the last three years. 
Although in a minority, he sustained, as well as he was able, 
the principle of equal representation, because he considered 
that, as one of those original principles for whose security the 
Constitution itself was founded ; and that a departure from an 
ancient usage, which was right in theory also, for the purposes 
of convenience only, could not be defended on the ground of 
expediency or justice. 

He has expressed doubts as to the expediency of the pro- 
jected reform in the Constitution of the British House of Com- 
mons. His doubts remain. 

He has said that this plan of reform is a departure from fun- 
damental principles, and will be followed by further innovations 
which may lead to an entire subversion of the British Consti- 
tution. 

He repeats it. 

Yet these admissions do not justify even a presumption that 
he is favorable to an unequal representation, either in theory 
or practice. 



32 

lie thinks that a statesman must be deluded, if he supposes 
the same principles and forms of government to be equally ap- 
plicable to all nations. If he supposes that a Republican 
Government can be sustained in Russia, over a people who 
had been serfs and slaves, he is in as great an error as one 
who thinks that a King and House of Lords can be introduced 
into the Government of the United States. 

Therefore, in discussing principles of government, the ques- 
tion is not whether a particular form is the most perfect in the 
abstract, but whether that is the form best adapted to secure 
the happiness of the people upon whom it is to be imposed. 

The Catholic disabilities, the beer tax, and the income tax, 
in time of peace, were evils which, perhaps, would justify the 
complaints of the people of Great Britain. These evils are re- 
moved or greatly palliated ; and if any remain, arising from 
the legislation of Parliament, and not from the Constitution 
itself, the proof that they are a consequence of Borough repre- 
sentation is not made out : therefore, the Borough representa- 
tion is to be considered, as yet, an abstract and theoretical, 
and not a practical evil. There is not even an apparent ne- 
cessity to justify an experiment so hazardous as disfranchise- 
ment. 

The origin of the British House of Commons defies the re- 
searches of the historian. Some look to the Heptarchy, — and 
some to the reigns of the early Norman Kings. It has existed 
time out of mind. The number of the members, and the dur- 
ation of the Parliaments, depended, originally, on the pleasure 
of the King. His writs were issued to Counties, Cities, and 
Boroughs: Boroughs were sometimes overlooked. It was not 
until the reign of James I, that the Universities became incor- 
porated in the general system of representation. Charles I. 
consented to a law by which the dissolution of Parliament was 
made to depend on themselves ; and the Parliament continued 
to sit until they were expelled by the bayonets of Cromwell's 
soldiers, — Cromwell himself, being commanded by the Lord 
to perform the great work of subverting the Constitution of 
England. 

Previous to the Restoration, seventy-two boroughs had been 
disfranchised ; " that was to say, the crown had ceased to sum- 
mon them, at the general elections, to return Burgesses to the 



33 

House of Commons." After the Restoration, thirty-six pe- 
titioned Parliament to be restored to their ancient privilege ; 
this was done : the other thirty-six made no application, and 
lost the right. The obligation to elect Burgesses had been 
previously deemed a burthen, and not a privilege. At this 
period, the Constitution of the House of Commons, with re- 
spect to representation, became permanent ; and has existed 
in the same shape, (with slight variations) to the present day. 
This privilege became valuable : its value has been constantly 
augmenting ; and the price of real estate, wherever the privi- 
lege exists, has been greatly increased. Most of the great 
men," who havefrisen to eminence in Parliament, during the 
last century, have made their way to distinction, through the 
Boroughs. 

In 1783, Mr. Pitt introduced a plan of Reform into Parlia- 
ment, which proposed an addition of one hundred members to 
the County Representation, but not any disfranchisement of 
the Borouglis. 

In 1785, then being Prime Minister, he renewed the at- 
tempt in another shape ; proposing to add scventy-tvvO to tlie 
number of the County members, and to disfranchise thirty-six 
Boroughs by their own consent, on their ov»'n application, and 
for a remuneration in money to be paid from a fund to be cre- 
ated for that purpose. He also proposed that every Borough 
should be disfranchised if it could be proved that a majority of 
its voters had been bribed, the honest voters being permitted 
to vote in the County on their Borough qualification. 

William Pitt, bold as he was, and able as he v/as, in the 
plenitude of his power, had not the hardihood to propose the 
disfranchisement of a Borough, without consent and remuner- 
ation ; unless as a penalty for bribery and corruption. He 
saw the danger of unsettling the foundation of property and 
civil privileges, which had been secured by the laws and prac- 
tises of England. 

A system of government may be simplified in explanation, 
by comparison with another, of a similar character, with which 
we are familiar. 

In Rhode-Island, a system of representation was established 
about the same period in which the English system became 

permanent ; — a system originally equal ; but now, from time, 
5 



34 

circumstanees, and accidsnt,, unequal, — a system presenting 
some analogies to the English Borough system ; for instance : 
Newport, with less than half the population of Providence^ 
has, six Representatives. Providence only four ; Portsmouth, 
has four ; and many other Tow-ns with a population double and 
triple, have only two. Jamestown with a population less than 
five hundred, has two, and several towns, whose numbers are 
but little less than five thousand have no more. 

If a constitution was now to be established in Rhode Island, 
for the first time, the present basis of representation would be 
rejected, and that of population adopted. 

But if the existing constitution has been equal to the exigen- 
cies of the State, — if a civil and religious liberty and property 
have been well secured, — if justice has been well administered, 
if the general welfare and happiness of the people have been 
promoted, why should the Rhode Islanders change that con- 
stitution, and put so much positive good in hazard, to attain a 
theoretic equality ? If it be answered, that the inequality of 
the representation of Newport and Providence shews the in- 
justice of the system and is a sufficient argument to justify a 
change, it might be said with propriety that an argument drawn 
from the condition of these towns carries its own refutation ; 
for Newport has advanced but little for a century, and Provi- 
dence is one of the most thriving towns in New-England. 
Whenever the people of Providence shall feel the evils of bad 
government by an invasion of their rights and privileges, and 
shall be able to trace such evils to an unequal representation, 
then they would have an unquestionable justification for seek- 
ing a change. 

The following are the views in brief, which the author takes 
of this question. 

There is no precise and exact model from which constitu- 
tions can be fashioned. 

All constitutions must be framed with a view to the habits, 
usages, course of education, degree of knowledge, circumstan- 
ces, sympathies and connexions of the people over whom they 
are to be established, and these not being the same in any 
two nations, a constitution well adapted to the one, would be 
impracticable in the other. Even in this union there are no 
tw'o states with similar constitutions. Rhode Island would be 



uneasy under the constitution of Massachusetts, and Mas- 
sachusetts under that of Rhode Island ; neither, would endure 
the constitutions of Virginia, South Carolina, or Tennessee, nor 
would those States endure theirs. 

Equality of representation is to be preferred in the abstract, 
and always where it has been the usage. 

Amongst a people, who have thriven, and have been well 
protected in their civil, religious, and personal rights under a 
particular form of government, an attempt to obtain another, 
even if it be in theory more perfect, is dangerous, and particu- 
larly so in Great-Britain because the constitution of that na- 
tion, existing altogether by prescription, the Parliament being 
sovereign, and the boundaries of power not defined, in an in- 
strument of Government, if changed in an essential part, the 
whole fabric of the government would be endangered : this 
partial change would supply the authority of precedent to justify 
entire change, and further innovations would be rendered com- 
paratively easy. The evils arising under the British Constitu- 
tion are not so great, as to justify a change so great. If under 
the existing constitution great and intolerable evils should have 
sprung up, productive of tyranny and oppression and render- 
ing person and property insecure, then the right of complete 
revolution vs'"ould follow, and there is a well grounded appre- 
hension that this innovation will produce that state of things 
which would justify a revolution, by rendering property inse- 
cure at first, and then civil liberty : neither does it secure its 
professed object, it enables a party, not the people, to secure 
for a time at least, the enjoyment of political power ; privileges 
which the people were told were usurped from them, are not 
restored. The Duke of Devonshire saves his five close Bo- 
roughs, and Lord Fitzwilliam four out of his five : the influence 
of the Aristocracy is not curtailed, it is strengthened (tempora- 
rily at least) by destroying the antagonist power : it is trans- 
ferred from Tory Lords and wealthy Commoners, to the Lords 
and wealthly Commoners of the Whigs, but in so doing, the 
" standing place" to Archimides has been supplied, and when 
the Radical lever begins to shake the Whig Temple, the Whigs 
may call upon the Tories for help, but they will find that Samp- 
son is bound and shorn of his locks. 



36 



B. 

The autlior is aware that a single word in excuse of Charles 
X. will not be received very graciously, at the present moment, 
in America. But there were no special prejudices against him 
here until he was dethroned : since then, he seems to have 
been pursued by the hue and cry of the whole world. Even 
the English press, — which once was disposed to treat all un- 
fortunate strangers, who sought an asylum in England, with 
decent respect, and exhibited some commisseration and sym- 
pathy for misfortune, — has permitted itself to be made the me- 
dium of malicious jeers, and pitiful ribaldry upon this unfortu- 
nate and aged King and his family, and it even seemed to 
display a savage exultation at the prospect of his arrest for 
debt ! Are the common sympathies of human nature to be de- 
nied to fallen royalty } Whatever his faults may have been, 
this sorrow-stricken king was true to his friends and grateful 
to those who had rendered him services. He had the enter- 
prise to undertake and bring to a successful termination the 
expedition against Algiers, and the whole Christian world owe 
him some gratitude for suppressing a nation of pirates, who 
plundered the commerce of the universal world and inflicted the 
most cruel slavery upon their christian prisoners. He was an 
early friend of America. He was the brother of Louis XVI, 
and the tenant of his throne is the son of Philip Egalite ! 

He trusts that it will not be placed to the score of aristocratic 
propensities, if he, as an American, should feel and express 
some sympathy in the fate of the Dutchess of Angoulciae, 
the only surviving offspring of Louis XVI, and Marie Antoi- 
nette, the benefactors of America. If he should lament the 
unparalleled misfortunes of a female, who may well be denomi- 
nated "the child of misery" — whose face has never worn a 
smile, and whose heart has been a perennial fountain of grief ; 
who in her infancy shared the horrible imprisonment of her pa- 
rents ; who saw them dragged by ruffian hands to the Guillo- 
tine, and heard the savage yells of joy, which announced the 
comj)lction of that bloody catastrophe, which made her an or- 



ERRATA. 

,.,,. U V,„= U, A.lc "He," l,=fo,-e .!« w».J l..u„ms. 

: ,0 ,i„e 6, for " Lawyers," red " Z,»«S.re«- 

.. 31 line 13, (Jele " a." 



37 

phan ; who saw a double murder perpetrated upon her only 
and infant brother, the murder of mind, and of body, under 
circumstances of cruelty, till then unknown, and appalling to 
think of; whose youth was spent among strangers, far from 
the land of her birth, in wretched exile ; who had scarcely 
tasted of prosperity, when she was driven from her country, 
and after another restoration, to fill the cup of her sorrow to 
overflowing, she is compelled to endure another exile, and 
again to wander through the world, on another pilgrimage of 
woe. The daughter of a mighty monarch, — the wife of the 
heir apparent, of a mighty monarchy, — the grand-daughter of 
the most illustrious woman of her age, — it would have seemed, 
that the path of her destiny, would have led her through "the 
pleasant places," yet the hand of a sinister fate, has pressed 
heavily and steadily upon her, almost from her birth ; the 
crown seems to fly from a head, which like that of Margaret 
of Anjou, seems destined to bend beneath the weight of eter- 
nal disasters. Her high and heroic qualities, extorted the ad- 
miration of Napoleon himself; — and yet the last and only 
hope which consoles the desolation of her heart, is in that 
quiet place, "where the wicked cease from troubling, and the 
weary are at rest." 

The author admits that Charles X, and his ministers, had 
no perception of the actual state of afiairs in the city of Paris, 
at the time of the Revolution : — that they should have re- 
mained in complete ignorance of a wide spread conspiracy to 
effect their overthrow, whenever a decent pretext should be 
found, indicates a miserable lack of sagacity. He who sup- 
poses the Revolution to have been the effect of a spontaneous 
ebullition of popular feeling, has but little knowledge of the 
mode of producing Revolutions in Paris. He who supposes 
that the bankers La Fitte and Casimir Perrier, could have 
placed themselves at the head of this Revolution, and filled 
in succession the places of prime ministers, solely on the ground 
of eminent talents, and exalted patriotism, must think meanly 
of the wisdom and sagacity of Frenchmen. 



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